4 reasons Barcelona could be in for some lean years

On Aug. 20, 2016, Gerard Deulofeu found himself in 33-year-old Jonas Olsson's moth-eaten back pocket at West Bromwich Albion. A year later, the Spaniard could be tasked with filling Luis Suarez's boots in Barcelona's attack against Real Betis.

A season scoring eight league goals for Everton and AC Milan shouldn't merit such an elevated status for Deulofeu, but that's the predicament Barcelona is in. Neymar's €222-million move to Paris Saint-Germain purloined fans of the famed South American triumvirate up front, and now Suarez's knee injury leaves Ernesto Valverde's frontline looking threadbare beyond Lionel Messi.

The issues don't just lie there. Valverde may have landed one of the loftiest roles in football, but, through years of poor boardroom decisions and a decaying philosophy, it is simultaneously one of the most difficult jobs.

Here are four problems that threaten Barcelona's position among club football's elite:

Homegrown identity on the wane

Until the conclusion of Pep Guardiola's reign in 2012, there was a well-trodden path between the breeding ground of La Masia and the senior squad.

With the exception of the odd addition - players like David Villa and Dani Alves - Guardiola's ranks were indoctrinated in the team's philosophy, playing identikit systems to the first team throughout their academy tenures, and therefore seamlessly slotting into the formula when called into the senior setup. It was the most envied conveyor belt in world football.

It hasn't been as fruitful in recent years, and that's not due to a dearth in talent. Jordi Mboula, a teenager blessed with devastating dribbling ability, left for AS Monaco this summer, and former captain Carles Puyol gleaned 16-year-old Eric Garcia from the production line, leading him into the clutches of Guardiola's Manchester City.

They are two of many players who have been inexplicably disregarded. Mauro Icardi, Keita Balde, Alex Grimaldo, Hector Bellerin, Sandro Ramirez, and Marc Bartra have all slipped through the net, and Valverde would've loved to have them at his disposal at the start of the summer.

It's not just a poor overlooking of talent, it's also a sad end to one of Barcelona's proudest traditions.

What happens when Messi, Suarez start to decline?

With La Masia drying up, Barcelona is splurging cash in a fashion traditionally associated with Real Madrid - albeit in a less calculated manner.

With Neymar out the door and Suarez sidelined, president Josep Maria Bartomeu is set to rack up the air miles and phone bill as he desperately tries to remold Valverde's strikeforce.

Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho and Borussia Dortmund's Ousmane Dembele are unquestionably gifted and, at 25 and 20, respectively, time is on their side. However, the much-publicised war chest at the club's disposal after PSG triggered Neymar's release clause leaves Barcelona exposed. Clubs can demand eyewatering prices, and there's no guarantee that either Liverpool or Dortmund will cash in.

Messi and Suarez are still comfortably nestled among the best players in the world, but at 30 they will soon begin their decline. Age comes for everyone, even the very best. Considering La Masia's failings and recent transfer business, Barcelona could deteriorate with their potent goal plunderers the longer it dwells on bolstering its attacking arsenal.

Questionable transfer decisions

Even for a club the calibre of Barcelona, miserable dealings in consecutive transfer windows can prove devastating; the Catalan side is digging its own (deep) hole thanks to a series of questionable transfers.

Barcelona's signings last summer quickly came under scrutiny. Andre Gomes was clearly out of his depth in a midfield that was beginning to get overrun, and Paco Alcacer didn't prove himself a capable fill-in behind the MSN frontline. Denis Suarez was re-signed, Lucas Digne shifted from Paris Saint-Germain, and Jasper Cillessen stepped in for Claudio Bravo - and none of them made significant impact.

Samuel Umtiti was the signing of the summer.

And the team's needs are yet to be addressed as we enter the final two weeks of the transfer window. The strikeforce is the thinnest it's been for a generation, no long-term replacement for Andres Iniesta has been acquired, and midfield brawn beyond Sergio Busquets is absent.

The close-season capture of Paulinho has garnered the most attention out of the arrivals, and for all the wrong reasons.

Real Madrid poised to dominate

Barcelona teetering on the edge of the crisis coincides with one of the most promising eras of Real Madrid's history.

Zinedine Zidane's status as one of the world's best-ever players earned respect with the latest era of Galaticos, and his tactical tweaks - deploying Isco in a position similar to his own 15 years earlier, reimagining Cristiano Ronaldo as a prowling No. 9 - have helped construct the most ruthless team on the planet.

Barcelona was dismantled by Real Madrid over two legs of the Supercopa de Espana.

Los Blancos' depth is remarkable. Like Suarez, Ronaldo faces time out of lineup - a five-match suspension for pushing referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea - but his lack of availability doesn't lead to panic. In Marco Asensio, Real Madrid has one of the most talented youngsters on the planet, and he's poised to tear through Deportivo La Coruna, Valencia, Levante, and others in his employer's season-opening league bouts.

Related: Why Real Madrid won't skip a beat in Ronaldo's absence

And even after the departures of James Rodriguez and Alvaro Morata, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema, Lucas Vazquez, and Borja Mayoral are squabbling for game time with Asensio.

Still, at least Barcelona has Deulofeu.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)